Coupler



Jan. 12 1926.

E. C. POST COUPLER Original Filed March 9, 1922 /l/ff" A 149 latentedJan. 12, 1926i.

UNITED STATES i istanza PATENT oFFlC.

EDWARD C. POST, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO VAPOR CAR HEATING COM-PANY, INC., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, .A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

COUPLEB.

Original application illed March 9, 1922, Serial No. 542,297. Dividedand this 1924. Serial No. 707,379.

[o all whom 'it may conce/Mt:

Be it known that I, EDWARD C. Postr, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Couplers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to a hose coupling, especially a coupling intendedfor detachably uniting the hoses or equivalent flexible, metal, tubularelements on the ends of the train pipes of adjacent cars of a railroadtrain.

The primary object of my invention 1s to provide a novel, simplecoupling of economical construction of which the mating coup- 1ers maybe brought into a preliminary engagement by a lateral movement of onemember toward the other (without the usual rocking or angular movementscharacteristic of the gravity type of coupling) and then drawn intofluid tight relation with thelr gaskets pressed one against the other tocomplete the coupling operation. More specifically, my inventioncontemplates the formation of one of the elements of the coupling with aprojecting lug and the other with a sliding member which is forced intoengagement with said lug, so as to draw the couplers. The term coupleris used to detric or equivalent device. By the term coupling I intend toinclude both mating couplers. The term .coupler7 is used to denote oneof these members. The coupling may consist of two members, eachconstructed :n accordance with my present invention, but .a singlecoupler as constructed may be mated `with another coupler differentlydesigned so long as the other coupler is provided with engaging parts ofsuitable configuration and properly placed to effect an interlockingengagement with the corresponding part of the other coupler.

The invention consists in the new and improved constructions,arrangements and devices to be hereinafter described and claimed vforcarrying out the above stated objects, and such other incidental objectsas will appear from the following description of a preferred embodimentof the invention as shown in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a plan View, with certain parts in section, of a coupling oftwo identical couplers made in accordance with my invention. I

Fig. 2 is a side elevation `of the coupling shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a view, in perspective, `of the sliding member employed in theconstruction of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4: is a fragmentary view inelevation of the sliding member showingthe other sidc of the same from that shown in Fig. 3, an

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of the actuating cam for moving thesliding member of a coupler into locking engagement with another coupleras shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

In the drawing I have shown my improved coupling made up of two,preferably though not necessarily, identical couplers A and B. Each ofthese couplers consists of a head 10 provided with the usual fluidpassage therethrough and with a gasket 11 of suitable constructionfitted in theend of such fluid passage so as to bear against acorresponding gasket of the mating coupler when said coupling is in itsassembled operative position. Thecoupler heads are each formed on oneside' with an undercut lug 12 and on the other side with a forwardlyprojecting arm 13 having outstanding parallel flanges 14:, 15 betweenwhich is arranged a sliding member 16. This member is provided at itsforward end with a head 17 projecting through an opening 18 in the armand formed` with an undercut curved lug 19 adapted to engage the lug l2on the mating coupler. The rear portion of member 16 .is formed with arecess 20 and with upper and lower slots 21, 22. The sliding member 16is actuated by means of a rotary cam or eccentric 23 arranged in recess20 of the sliding member and held in place by means of a stud 24 whichis fixed by cotter pin 25 .in the flanges 14, 15 and extends throughslots 21, 22 in the member 16 and through ay perforation 26 in the cam23. The cam is provided with a suitable handle 27 and to allow thenecessary amplitude of movement to the cam the back wall 28 of thesliding member 16 is cut away as indicated at 29 and the side of saidmember is grooved out, as indicated at 30. The cam 23 is adapted to bearagainst the back wall pplication led April 18,

4of the coupler,

28 of the member 16 and. against the surface 31 thereof defining therecess 2O at its forward side.

The sliding member 16 is applied in its opeiative'position vby.inserting the recessed end 32 through the opening 18 of the arm 13 sothat the fiat surface 33 of the end 32 will slide along on the flatsurface 34: of the side theinnerface35 held in sliding engagement withthe surface 36 lof the coupler and the outer faces 37-87 ofthe lug 17held in sliding engagement with the inner lface of the arm 13 so as toprevent any appreciable angular or lateral displacement of the Slidingmember.

Operation lVhen connecting the couplers, the handles 27 of the rotarycams of both couplers, when both couplers are of the type shown, areturned toward the outer ends of the arms 13. Such movement of the camsmov-es the sliding members 16-16 outwardly 'toward the end of the arms13-13 and thereby permits a preliminary engagement of the couplers to beeffected by moving one toward the other sidewise. After the preliminaryengagement is made the cams are rotated, as far as necessary, in theopposite direction to bring the gaskets 11-11 of the couplers intointimate contact. The curved 'surfaces of the lugs 12-12and that of theco-engaging lugs 19-19 are such as to automatically align the center ofthe couplers when one of vsaid. curved surfaces is forced againstanother, thereby ensuring that the coengaging faces of the gasket 11-11will bear latwise against the other. The movement of the sliding member16 is positive in both directions.

While I have described my invention in one specific embodiment, it isobvious that modifications in structure might be made lwithoutdepartureL from the principle of the invention. Therefore I wish it tobe understood that the invention is not to be considered as limited tothe particular constructions, arrangement and devices shown anddescribed except so -farfas the claims hereto appended are specificallyso limited.

This is a division of my copending application Serial No. 542,297 filedMarch 9, 1922, nowy Patent No. 1,508,408 dated September 16, 1924.

I claim:

1. A coupler for use as an lelement of a hose coupling, comprising ahead formed with a port therethrough, a lug on one side of said head,'an arm forwardly projecting from the other side and formed with guideflanges, a member slidable between said guide flanges and adapted toengage the mating coupler, and formed with outstanding slotted webs, apivot pin extending through said flanges and through the slots in saidweb, a rotary eccentric on said pivot pin engaging said member to movethe same back and forth, and a handle on said eccentric.

For use as an element of a hose coupling, a coupler head provided with aforwardly extending arm. a member slida'ble-on said arm and adaptedto beengaged with a mating coupler by a lateral movement of said couplers,and means comprising a cam supported to rotate on an axis transverselyof the length of said coupler to actuate said sliding member to draw thecouplers together.

3. For use as an element of a hose couplinga coupler provided with aforwardly extending arm, 'a member slidable on said arm andy adapted tobe engaged with a mating coupler by a lateral movement of said couplers,and means for actuating said .slidable member to draw the couplerstogether comprising an element-pivoted on the coupler to movelongitudinally thereof.

i. A hose couplingcomprising two coupler heads one of which is formed.with a lug and the other with an arm having a 'slidable' member thereonadapted to be engaged with said lug by a lateral vmovement of saidcoupler heads, and provided with an eccentric to actuate said slidingmember to draw said coupler heads together.

5. A hose coupling comprising two coupler heads, one of which is formedwith a lug and the other with an arm having a slidable member thereonadapted to be brought into .preliminary engagement with said lug by alateral movement of said heads and provided with an eccentric pivoted tomove longitudinally of `said last mentioned coupler to actuate saidslidable member.

6. A hose coupling comprising coengaging coupler heads adapted to bemoved intopreliminary engagement with each other by a lateral movement,each of which is rformed on yone side with an undercut lug and providedon the other side with an arm having a slidable member thereon formedwith an undercut portion for engaging the undercut lug of the matingcoupler, and provided with a rovoluble eccentric for actuating saidslidable member.

7. i coupler for use as an element of .a hose coupling, comprising ahead formed with a. port therethrough, a lug one one side of the head,an arm forwardly projecting from the other side, a member slidable onsaid arm and adapted to engage with a mating coupler, and means foractuating said slid-able member to draw the couplers together comprisinga member pivoted to rotate longitudinally of said coupler.

S. A. coupler for use as an element of a hose coupling, comprising ahead formed with a port therethrough, a lug on one side of the head, anarm forwardly projecting from the other side, and a ymember slidable onsaid arm and provided at 'one end 'witha lll lug for engaging the matingcoupler and at flanges, a member slidable between seid the other endwith a recess, and a. rotary ecguide flanges and formed at one end witha centric positioned in said recess and adapted lug' for engaging themating coupler and at when rotated to impart movement to said the otherend with a recess, a pivot pin exl slidable member. tending through saidanges, and a rotary Il 9. A coupler for use as an element of a eccentricon said pivot pin and extending'` hose coupling, comprising a headyformed into said recesses to move the slidable mem- With a porttherethrough, a lug on one side bei' back and forth. of the head, an armforwardly projecting l0 from the other side and formed with guide EDVARDC. POST.

